Ketamine is used as a general anesthetic to prevent pain and discomfort during certain medical
tests or procedures, or minor surgery.
Ketamine may also be used for purposes other than those listed in this medication guide.
What should I discuss with my healthcare provider before taking ketamine?
Before you receive ketamine, tell your doctor if you are allergic to any drugs, or if you have a
history of alcoholism.
Ketamine may be harmful to an unborn baby. Before you receive ketamine, tell your doctor
if you are pregnant.
How should I take ketamine?
Ketamine is given as an injection through a needle placed into a vein or muscle. You will
receive this injection in a clinic or hospital setting.
Your caregivers will monitor your heart function, blood pressure, and breathing while you are
under the effects of ketamine.
You may feel strange or slightly confused when you first come out of anesthesia. Tell your
caregivers if these feelings are severe or unpleasant.
What happens if I miss a dose of ketamine?
Since ketamine is usually given for anesthesia, you are not likely to be on a dosing schedule.
Where can I get more information about ketamine?
Your pharmacist has information about ketamine written for health professionals that you may read.
What are the possible side effects of ketamine?
Get emergency medical help if you have any of these
signs of an allergic
reaction:
hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.
Tell your caregivers at once if you have any of these serious side effects within 24 hours
after you receive ketamine:
severe confusion;
hallucinations;
unusual thoughts; or
extreme fear.
Less serious side effects may include:
dream-like feeling;
double vision;
jerky muscle movements;
dizziness, drowsiness;
nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite; or
sleep problems (insomnia).
This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Tell your
doctor about any unusual or bothersome side effect. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.
What is the most important information I should know about ketamine?
Before you receive ketamine, tell your doctor if you are allergic to any drugs, or if you have a
history of alcoholism.
It may take you longer to recover from anesthesia with ketamine if you have recently used a
barbiturate such as phenobarbital (Luminal) or secobarbital (Seconal), or a narcotic medication such as
fentanyl (Actiq, Duragesic), hydrocodone (Lortab, Vicodin), oxycodone (OxyContin), propoxyphene
(Darvocet, Darvon), and others.
Ketamine may be harmful to an unborn baby. Before you receive ketamine, tell your doctor
if you are pregnant.
You may feel strange or slightly confused when you first come out of anesthesia. Tell your
caregivers if these feelings are severe or unpleasant.
Ketamine can cause side effects that may impair your thinking or reactions for 24 hours or
longer. Be careful if you drive or do anything that requires you to be awake and alert. You will
probably not be allowed to drive yourself home after your surgery or medical procedure.
Follow your doctor's instructions about any restrictions on food, beverages, or activity after you
recover from anesthesia.
What should I avoid while taking ketamine?
Ketamine can cause side effects that may impair your thinking or reactions for 24 hours or
longer. Be careful if you drive or do anything that requires you to be awake and alert. You will
probably not be allowed to drive yourself home after your surgery or medical procedure.
Follow your doctor's instructions about any restrictions on food, beverages, or activity after you
recover from anesthesia.
What other drugs will affect ketamine?
Before you receive ketamine, tell your doctor if you have recently used any of the following:
a barbiturate such as amobarbital (Amytal), butabarbital (Butisol),
mephobarbital (Mebaral), secobarbital (Seconal), or phenobarbital (Luminal, Solfoton); or
narcotic medication such as fentanyl (Actiq, Duragesic,
Ionsys), hydrocodone (Lortab, Vicodin), hydromorphone (Dilaudid, Palladone), methadone
(Dolophine, Methadose), morphine (Kadian, MS Contin, Oramorph), oxycodone (OxyContin,
Percocet, Roxicodone), propoxyphene (Darvocet, Darvon), and others.
If you are using any of these drugs, it may take you longer to recover from
anesthesia with ketamine.
There may be other drugs that can affect ketamine. Tell your doctor about all your prescription
and over-the-counter medications, vitamins, minerals, herbal products, and drugs prescribed by other
doctors. Do not start a new medication without telling your doctor.
Remember, keep this and all other medicines out of the reach of children, never share
your medicines with others, and use this medication only for the indication prescribed.
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up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. Multum
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warrant that uses outside of the United States are appropriate, unless specifically indicated otherwise. Multum's drug information does
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a substitute for, the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners. The absence of a warning for a given drug or
drug combination in no way should be construed to indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective or appropriate for any
given patient. Multum does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the aid of information
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interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, check with your doctor, nurse
or pharmacist.
Content provided by Multum - Last Updated 11/10/2009